Pokémon GG
by That2009WeirdEmoKid
Summary: In the near future of a world similar to ours, Nintendo has developed groundbreaking A.I. and augmented reality holograms to simulate actual Pokémon Training. With millions now aiming to participate in the newly established Pokémon League, a failed pro gamer and a plucky teenager embark on a quest to achieve a once impossible dream: becoming Pokémon Masters.
1. New World? New Beginnings!

Pokémon is stupid. Anyone over the age of eighteen who centered their identity and peace of mind around how much they love a soulless, heavily marketed video game franchise didn't deserve the title of "functioning adult". That was what Scarlet believed Pokémon encouraged in people, compulsive fanaticism, and she was pretty certain that devoting any sizable amount of energy to anything related to it was a complete waste of time. Nothing could change her mind on this so... why did Scarlet even feel tempted when an unexpected box was delivered to her front door?

The brown postal package rested on the kitchen counter, unopened. Her coffee got cold while she stared at it and she still didn't know what to do. There was a big pokéball drawn across its surface which, along with the timing of the delivery, told her everything she needed to know about it.

Scarlet sighed.

It was probably the new pokémon game that required a fancy hi-tech peripheral to work. Everyone on the internet was talking about it. Pre-orders had sold out in two minutes a few months prior and the lines for its release today were literally kilometric. Scarlet pressed her lips together. She hadn't ordered anything. Clearly, this package wasn't meant for her. Would re-selling it online be that bad?

Scarlet frowned. Of course it would. Some poor soul was most likely devastated right now because they didn't get their new game on time. Scarlet nodded to herself. She needed to figure out who it belonged to and return it to them as soon as possible.

As she inspected the package, she quickly found an envelope stuck to its side. It had a note that read:

_"Dear Scarlet,_

_The only reason I'm sending you this is because your grandfather had requested_

_it in his will. Please give it a chance._

_Love,_

_Dad_

_P.S. Watch the Nintendo Direct at noon for all the details. It's important!"_

Scarlet chuckled. That made things a million times easier. She tore up the note, crumbled the envelope into a ball, and threw them both into her trash bin. Dumping the entire package was tempting, but Scarlet knew better than that. She gulped down her coffee and went into her bedroom with a blissful smile. Those peripherals were being sold for a grand on the internet. More than a month's rent!

Unfortunately, by the time she put on her uniform, Scarlet was nearly late for work. She sprinted out of her apartment complex unprepared, hoping to tame her unruly, jet-black hair without elbowing other pedestrians as she navigated the city. She eventually managed to tie her mane into a bushy ponytail, though, no matter how much she fought it, a loose strand kept popping out of her head when she finally reached the general superstore.

Randal, the current supervisor, glared at her from across the produce section. Scarlet cringed. She officially clocked in a minute after the start of her shift. Randal puffed up with indignation, waddled over to Scarlet, and grunted:

"I gave someone else your register."

Scarlet lowered her gaze. "Sorry."

"I'm gonna have to write you up."

"This is the first time in months..."

"Then keep it that way." Randal slicked back his thinning hair. "I know you feel like I'm being harsh, but a business can quickly turn dysfunctional when management can't trust employees to be responsible. I need more effort on your part, okay?"

Scarlet suppressed the urge to inform him he was only an assistant manager, choosing to instead just nod.

"Good talk" said Randall. "Now go help Charlotte out in the back."

Scarlet rolled her eyes and began to walk through the store, putting things back in shelves whenever she found something out of place. There were a lot of Pokémon tie-ins being pushed this season. Why was everyone obsessed with the damn things all of a sudden? Scarlet strolled past the different aisles feeling suffocated by the franchise. Pikachu-shaped pasta, Clefairy cookie molds (which oddly enough were indistinguishable from the cheaper Gengar cookie molds), Cyndaquil toasters, Wheezing cough syrup and… Alola-form Exeggutor tampons?

Scarlet shook her head. Marketing could be really silly sometimes. Actually, this wasn't that unusual now that she thought about it. Pokémon's relevance always came and went every few years depending on the zeitgeist, usually swelling when there was about to be a big leap between two generations, gameplay or technology-wise. Still, for the first time since she started working here, Scarlet felt happy to be welcomed by the stale smell of the dusty storage room. At least it meant she didn't have to see pokémon everywhere her eyes went.

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Duncan ran into the bathroom to wash his face. His trembling hands made it hard to turn on the faucet. This wasn't happening. Millions of pokémon were about to flood the streets of every single metropolitan area on the planet and nobody understood why it needed to be stopped.

The executives were going to meet any second now. If Duncan didn't speak up now, there would be no going back. They needed to know the truth. Duncan dried himself and took a deep breath. This launch could permanently damage society forever. People would curse his name alongside history's greatest monsters because of the damming sin they were about to commit. After all, he was one of the lead developers of the project.

Duncan fixed his suit's collar, straightened his tie, and checked his watch. Five minutes to go. His hands wouldn't stop shaking. He had to focus and inform Mister Wilfery of his intentions before going inside. This stunt was going to cost Duncan his job either way, but he didn't want to go out burning more bridges than necessary. And really, Wilfery deserved to be treated with the same warmth and professionalism he always offered to his subordinates. Duncan exited the bathroom with more swagger than he expected. It was a foolish endeavor, but he found solace in his certainty that he was doing the right thing.

Duncan turned a corner on the hallway and shriveled up. Wilfery stood outside the conference room, chatting with some senior executives that had arrived for the meeting. Duncan swallowed and walked over to him.

The old businessman's eyes lit up. "Dunk!"

"H-hi, sir. Umm… Could I...?"

"Yes?"

"It's about the email I sent you. I never got a reply so I wasn't sure if you saw it."

Mister Wilfery hardened his expression. "Oh." He excused himself, ushering Duncan away from the executives. "I understand you have your worries, but I think you're overreacting a little."

"What?!"

Wilfery flinched.

Duncan silently apologized, lowering his voice. "So you read my message?"

"It's not a bug; it's a feature."

"It's playing god!"

Wilfery shook his head. "Believe it or not, this isn't up to us to decide."

"You're right." Duncan glanced at the senior executives entering the conference room. "It's up to them."

Wilfery sighed. "That's not what I meant…"

"Are you going to stop me?"

"No, no. If you truly believe you need to say something, feel free to do so. I won't protect you, though."

Duncan nodded.

"Well then," Wilfery gestured at the conference room, "shall we go?"

"Y-yes."

Shortly after both men entered the room, everyone settled into their cushy leather chairs. On the edge of the oval-shaped table, in front of every chair, there were pens, notepads, and glasses of water, with two full pitchers placed on the center in case anyone wanted a refill. The three senior executives sat next to each other at one end of the table, with a presentation screen being set up for them on the opposite end. Laura, the head of marketing, stood up and welcomed everyone to the meeting. She then started with the usual corporate speak about how influential the brand was while clicking through a slideshow behind her, pretty much confirming what everyone already knew: Pokémon was as big as ever, it made a lot of money every year, and that was a good thing for Nintendo. Duncan's attention wavered from her words. His growing anxiety wouldn't allow him to do anything else but worry. He didn't know what to tell these people. He didn't even know where to start.

After Laura finished her report, Andrew took her place with a slideshow of his own. He was one of the head designers in charge of competitive play and game balance, so he went on in detail explaining the intricacies of the new Global Pokémon League that was about to be established. A fair payment structure for the professional circuit, open inscription for ranked tournaments every month, and several former champions were already scheduled to compete in streamed exhibition matches later in the afternoon. If this plan was a success, pokémon training was going to be a legitimate profession in less than a decade!

Duncan wiped his brow, drank some water, and wept internally. They would have to scrap this entire system of organized play. And they would all hate him for it.

Andrew concluded his presentation. Everyone in the room stared at Duncan.

He widened his eyes, frozen.

"Dunk?" said Wilfery.

"Right." Duncan stood up. "Well…"

A senior executive arched an eyebrow.

"Everything's great" said Duncan, hating himself as soon as he opened his mouth. "The day one patch is already scheduled to go live when the Nintendo Direct finishes airing, and my team streamlined all the troublesome bugs in the combat engine. Now, obviously, it's impossible to guarantee that there won't be any... unexpected gameplay elements, especially since this is our first time using an artificial intelligence as advanced as this..." He took another sip of water and cleared his throat. "But… yeah, that's pretty much it."

"And the security measures?" said another senior executive.

"Well, like always, there were some leaks, but everyone still thinks the game will be played on a normal screen. Anyone who tried to jailbreak the PokéGloves would end up with a bricked unit before discovering it uses augmented reality."

"Good, good" said the senior executive.

Duncan faced Mister Wilfery. "I… believe that's the end of my report."

Mister Wilfery hunched forward. "Are you sure about that…?"

Duncan swallowed.

The three executives remained stoic.

Duncan couldn't breathe. There wouldn't be a second opportunity. "No sir, there's something else on my mind. A bigger worry."

An executive nodded. "Is the game not up to your standards?"

"N-no! The game itself is the most polished it could be. In fact, I was having trouble getting the playtesters to submit their reports because they couldn't stop playing."

"Then what's wrong?"

"The creatures themselves. Their battle AI is programmed to detect, respond and adapt to their trainer's emotions, building a behavioral model that's compatible with their personality. Because of this, after spending time together, trainers instinctively start treating these creatures as if they're actually real, which only makes the AI develop more complex behavioral patterns, which in turn strengthens their bond even more, until… well, they're almost indistinguishable from genuine Pokémon."

The executive nodded, impressed. "It seems like you and your team outdid yourselves. What's the problem?"

"You're not understanding him" said Wilfery. "What he's trying to propose is that these creatures might actually be alive."

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Scarlet sneezed.

Charlotte bumped into her and dropped a box on her own toe. She shrieked backwards in pain, jiggling her curly blonde hair all around while jumping on her other leg.

Scarlet rushed to her aid, acting like a crutch until they both sat on a big crate. "Are you okay?"

Charlotte shook her foot. "Y-yeah, I'm fine." She placed some weight on it and winced. "Never mind. Just give me a moment."

Scarlet hung her head, weeping internally. It was her fault for sneezing. Why was she such a mess today? She then perked up and mumbled in a soft tone:

"Stay here. I'll finish the rest."

Charlotte widened her eyes. "Really? You sure about that?"

Scarlet nodded.

"It's so strange hearing your voice." Charlotte smiled at her, radiating genuine warmth. "You're really cool though!"

Scarlet waved it off as she picked up the two boxes and walked away. It wasn't an altruistic decision. She just didn't want to stand around awkwardly until that girl felt better. They also needed to finish the work anyways so it was the best course of action if they wanted to have their lunch break on time. That said, Charlotte's personality made it easy to not mind the extra workload. Although she was a somewhat recent hire, a cute bubbly teenager like her always lessened the misery of Randall's tyrannical rule with her whimsical naivete.

Scarlet navigated the dim labyrinth of shelves with her vision impaired. The boxes she carried blocked her line of sight. She sighed after reaching a dead end by accident. Right. Charlotte was the one familiar with the storage room. Everyone but her hated working back here because of how confusing it could get. Thankfully, Scarlet was able to backtrack and take a different turn down the corridor, only to discover an area full of pottery and gardening equipment. She frowned. Was she lost? Scarlet chuckled. Of course not. It got harder to deny that fact after wandering for another ten minutes, though. Scarlet placed the boxes on the ground. Her arms were getting tired.

A loud crash echoed throughout the storage room.

"DAMN IT" screamed Charlotte, far away.

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Everyone in the room widened their eyes for what felt like a decade.

Duncan looked away, embarrassed.

"Though, to be more specific, he thinks they're sentient." Wilfery looked at him. "Isn't that right?"

"That's not… I don't even know what they are. I just think we might be on the verge of unleashing something irreversible upon the world."

An executive started laughing. "This is preposterous. It's just a game!"

"Yes," said another executive, "if it becomes too much of an issue, we can just shut the whole thing down."

Duncan slammed his hand on the table. "That's exactly what I'm trying to prevent!" He paused. They were shocked at his agitation. "I-I'm sorry, but if you do that after we launch the game, you could potentially be exterminating an entire species of new lifeforms. It's cruel and… and irresponsible."

"Wait" said Laura, "I thought they were holograms. They can't… feel, right?"

Duncan shook his head. "It's more complicated than that. While they don't have physical bodies, they do have to respond to external stimuli, so they're capable of distinguishing between harmful and pleasurable sensations. At the very least, the pokémon don't enjoy losing health points."

"It's still not pain" said Wilfery. "Their bodies aren't at risk of sustaining any damage."

"Sure but…"

"It might be uncomfortable?" Wilfery shook his head. "New experiences are always like that. They're literally built to grow from it!"

"Umm excuse me," Andrew raised his hand, "I know this might sound silly, but how intelligent are they? Do they even know they're alive?"

"It's not like they can hold a profound conversation but…" Duncan sighed. "I discovered all of this yesterday when an abra asked a playtester an existential question…"

Andrew slid back into his seat. "Oh…"

"I know…" Duncan hesitated, but found some courage. "We need to cancel the launch."

Two of the senior executives had grown visibly uncomfortable throughout the discussion. The third one continued to chuckle in disbelief at everything he heard, but his tone sounded increasingly worried and desperate. Duncan smiled with faint hope. He might actually convince them.

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Scarlet bolted in Charlotte's direction. That innocent sweet girl probably tried to keep working despite her injury. Scarlet heard rummaging up ahead. Oh no. She could be trapped under a pile of merchandise.

Scarlet turned right on an open section at full speed. Something tripped her. She strained but remained on her feet just to see Charlotte scavenging through a broken crate full of Eevee-themed backpacks that were scattered everywhere. Scarlet froze in her tracks, confused.

Charlotte opened another another backpack, inspected it for something, and flung it to the side with a frustrated grunt.

Scarlet walked up behind her. "What are you doing?"

Charlotte flinched and stood up, turning around. "Umm… I fell."

"Because of your foot?"

"Yup!"

"But you're standing there just fine…"

"R-right." Charlotte looked at mess she made. "That was… stupid." She sighed. "I'm gonna have to level with ya'."

"Sure."

"I hate this job."

Scarlet crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow. "Go on…"

"The only reason I've been here is because I'm hunting for a very rare, and cute, promotional shiny Eevee and this was the only way of securing one."

"I'm waiting for this to start making sense."

"There's only supposed to be two codes per retailer." Charlotte grinned. "And they're each going for around three hundred bucks online. Help me and we can split 'em!"

Scarlet scratched her chin. That was actually a good offer. Too good, actually. "Why didn't you wait until I was gone?"

Charlotte hung her head. "They're being sold at the end of this shift and I can't find them here!" She pointed at the crate. "So yeah, I'm desperate."

"And you went through the trouble of getting a real job just to sell these?"

"What? No." Charlotte laughed at how ridiculous that sounded. "I just wanted a gray Eevee. Have you seen 'em? They're adorable!"

Scarlet rolled her eyes. A legitimate excuse, like an ailing family member or something similar, would've been preferable but at least it sounded more wholesome than simple greed. "I'll look the other way…"

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

"I'm not convinced" said Wilfery.

Duncan deflated.

"Why?" said Andrew.

Wilfery shrugged. "I don't see why any of this is bad."

Duncan blinked a few times. "Are you kidding me? We're a videogame company! We couldn't even deliver proper netplay for decades, and that was with basic, antiquated games! Unleashing and managing an entire ecosystem of newly sentient beings is way out of our field!"

"So?" said Laura. "Weren't we originally a playing card company? And then a taxi service? And then a love hotel chain…?"

A senior executive nodded. "The taxi service was actually profitable… until..." he frowned, "...unions."

Duncan rubbed his temples. "We're doomed."

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

"...if you stop looking for the codes" said Scarlet.

"What?" said Charlotte. "Why?!"

"I don't think you understand the consequences of what you're doing."

Charlotte stared at the floor, pouting. "It's not like I'm stealing anything."

"You're breaking into merchandise. If Randall found out, he would fire you on the spot."

"That's fine. I wasn't planning on returning after I got my Eevee."

Scarlet took a moment to process that. Was she insane? "You can't just leave a job on a whim like that."

Charlotte softened her face. "Why not?"

"It's irresponsible. How are you getting another job if this keeps following you?"

"Oh, don't worry!" Charlotte smiled, relieved. "That won't be a problem. I'm gonna be a pro gamer soon!"

"Eh?"

"Haven't you heard? Pokémon New Genesis and New Gaia are launching alongside a fully funded Esports league!"

Scarlet's face fell.

"Yup, that's right!" Charlotte lifted her head, smirking. "Nobody near my high school could ever beat me, so now that I've graduated, I'm diving head first into the competitive scene!"

Scarlet started walking away. This girl was a lost cause.

"H-hey! Where are you going?"

"To finish my job."

"So you're letting me get the codes?"

Scarlet stopped and turned around. "I'm obviously telling Randall..."

Charlotte gulped.

"...after I'm done with those boxes. If you're gone by the time he looks for you, it won't be my problem anymore." Scarlet closed her eyes in self-reflection. She wanted to leave and keep her mouth shut but the regret would destroy her if she didn't say anything now. "I won't lie to you. I think everything you're doing is incredibly stupid. It might derail your entire life. I know you feel indestructible, and I won't take that confidence away from you, but I can tell with a glance that you haven't played against someone stronger than you yet."

Charlotte glanced away. "Well, I mean-"

"And, even if you're talented, guess what? There's thousands of gamers out there with the same amount of skill as you with way more time and discipline."

Charlotte made a dejected frown. "You don't know that…"

"Why? You think you can apply yourself because it's Pokémon? You think it'll be fun?"

"Yeah! Why wouldn't it be?"

"Because it's still hard work."

Charlotte shook her head. "I don't mind as long as I love it."

"And what if you stop loving it?"

Charlotte chuckled with surprise, as if it hadn't crossed her mind. "T-that won't happen…"

"Okay then. Go ahead. Try to be the very best, like no one else before you. Just don't complain when your escape from reality becomes a prison."

Charlotte welled up with tears. "Yeah… Well, well… What do _you_ know?!" She sniffed, shouted "You're just a bitter loser working retail!" and ran away crying.

Scarlet took a deep breath to steady her racing heart. It was the right thing to do. She never expected to get that emotional, though. A vague sense of pain lingered in her chest. Scarlet shook it off. That wasn't cruel. Charlotte would have to confront reality one way or the other. If she couldn't handle it when someone told her in good faith, it would shatter her spirit when facing it alone.

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Wilfery cleared his throat, regaining the attention of the room. "I'm still struggling to see why you have such a hard stance against this. Nothing you've said sounds bad."

"Perhaps from a human perspective" said Duncan. "Unfortunately, we might inflict on them a great amount of suffering without even realizing it."

Wilfery raised an eyebrow. "How?"

"The average person can barely control their emotions. If the human feels bad enough, the pokémon's programming would make it feel it even worse than the trainer."

"So that's it? We're supposed to deprive these creatures the beauty of existence just because they could suffer sometimes?"

Duncan stood silent for a moment with his mouth agape. "No, I wouldn't-"

"Then let's put it to a vote." Wilfery acknowledged everyone else in the room. "Would anyone like to add anything else before we continue?"

"Yes," said Laura, "I just want everyone to consider this vote carefully, without any sentimentality clouding your judgement. We've invested seventeen years of research into this, and if what Duncan says is true, we're on the verge of creating an entirely new market for ourselves. No regulations. No oversight. We decide what's ethical because we're breaking new ground here. It belongs to us. This could be our most profitable venture in history!"

Duncan grimaced. That shouldn't be a factor here. Wilfery then said:

"All in favor of canceling or postponing the project?"

Duncan, Andrew, and one senior executive raised their hands. It wasn't enough.

"Then it's settled!" Wilfery stood up, brimming with joy. "Get everyone in the stadium ready for the Nintendo Direct. We're launching Gaia and Genesis!"

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Scarlet went through the rest of her work in a strange daze. Charlotte never returned. Unfortunately, that meant Scarlet's lunch break was halfway gone by the time she found the appropriate location for the boxes. Her stomach grumbled. Maybe there was time for a snack. As she was about to exit the storage room, Randall opened the door and said:

"Oh! Back already from lunch? Good. I need you on the register. The Pokémon game is about to launch and we need all hands on deck."

"Actually, I was about to head out…"

Randall narrowed his eyes. "So you didn't punch out on time?"

"N-no. I wanted to finish-"

"That's not how the system works, Scarlet! We've been through this." Randall sighed. "That's two write ups in one day. What are you doing to fix this in the future?"

"I… I really don't know."

"Then I recommend you start figuring that out because you're on thin ice now. Which reminds me, where's Charlotte?"

"She uhh…" Scarlet paused. She had been trying to ignore the whole ordeal ever since it happened. Now that she was about to follow through on her word, the pit of her stomach tightened into a knot. "She broke a crate, I scolded her, and she left the store…"

"That seems excessive on both sides."

"I mean, she was looking for some exclusive Pokémon thing. I had to stop her."

Randall widened his eyes. "What… exactly…"

"An Eevee I think?"

Randall scowled. "And you didn't come get me?"

"But I was-" Scarlet furrowed her brow. Wait a second. "I never thought you'd care. Why weren't you angry about the crate?"

"I am!"

"No, you got angry over the Eevee."

Randall puffed up his chest. "Are you accusing me of something?"

"I'm pointing out facts."

"Why am I even-" Randall relaxed after a sudden realization. "I'd watch my mouth. You… you look awfully suspicious right now."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"Suspicious of what?"

"Working with her to steal the promotional Eevees!"

Scarlet scoffed. "How? Charlotte didn't take them, idiot!"

"Really?" Randall smiled. "Why don't we go check?"

"So that's how it's gonna be, eh?" The reason Charlotte couldn't find the codes was because Randall had already taken them. Scarlet shook her head. "Don't bother. I'm getting lunch now."

"Sure, go ahead. You're fired!"

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Azure could only stare in amazement after activating the PokéGlove.

The froakie blinked a few times, studying his surroundings. Although he was stylized to look more anime-cartoonish than naturalistic, his presence felt eerily authentic. The roar of the crowd vibrated through the ceiling of the locker room. Froakie hunched forward, terrified. It felt like an earthquake up there. They were probably revealing the true nature of the game right now.

Azure gave him a reassuring pat on the head. "There, there, little fella. It's okay. I'm nervous too."

Froakie eyed him in disbelief.

"Yes, really. To be honest, I haven't competed in front of a crowd for a long time."

Froakie tilted his head, curious.

"It's kind of a long story."

Froakie glowered at him with slight annoyance.

Azure chuckled. "Fine, I promise I'll tell you later, but we need to figure out some stuff before we go out there. Deal?"

Froakie nodded.

Another loud roar from the crowd. The Nintendo Direct would end soon. Azure wasn't given any instructions so it was up to him to figure out the controls now. He sighed. Dad had arranged this handicap. He was almost certain of it. Azure pressed the start button on the PokéGlove and a holographic menu materialized out of it. Then, after selecting the training mode, a glowing construct of hardened light appeared on his hands. A translucent GameCube controller.

Froakie straightened up, suddenly alert.

Strange. Azure tilted the left analog stick a bit and Froakie took a step forward. Could it be? He pressed the A button. Froakie did a quick jab. The B button triggered him to shoot a small squirt of bubbles.

Azure widened his eyes. Three-dimensional Smash Bros combat… with Pokémon training? Azure flicked the Y button as fast as he could. Froakie did a short hop.

Amazing!

Azure pursed his lips, deep in thought. Only one more thing to check. Froakie jumped and air dodged towards the ground, sliding backwards in an instant without turning around. Azure grinned. His inputting was awkward but this was a game changer.

Someone from the production crew entered the locker room. The match started in five minutes. Azure hadn't heard of his opponent. Apparently, he was the world champion of the previous main entry in the franchise.

Froakie shivered.

"Don't worry, Froakie." Azure picked him up and gently placed him on his shoulder. "A trainer's prestige comes from the number of battles fought; not won." They walked down the hallway together. The crowd grew louder the closer they got to the main stage. "It's just a game so, above all else, remember to keep it fun." He stopped in front of the entrance, glancing at his partner. "That said, we wouldn't mind winning, right?"

Froakie replied with an energetic thumbs up.

Azure mirrored him. "That's the spirit!"


	2. Struggle

Scarlet held her breath, stuffed between two wooden crates in the storage room. Randall surveyed the area until he was certain he wasn't being followed. Scarlet smirked. Her hunch was correct. After hearing about Charlotte's motives, Randall couldn't just leave the Eevee codes alone. An insecure jerk like him would want to make sure they were still in their hiding spot before going back to work. Scarlet poked her head out and frowned. Randall had moved out of sight. She slipped out of the gap, sneaking around a corner with delicate steps. Why was she even doing this? It wouldn't fix anything.

Randall entered the gardening section. Scarlet couldn't follow him there. The only way to get a vantage point without being spotted was by climbing to the upper level of the shelves. She whispered a pained sigh. At this point, realizing the amount of effort ahead of her, it became obvious she was better off abandoning this childish attempt at penitence.

Scarlet climbed anyways.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

The top of the shelf was full of old crates. Scarlet dug through several layers of dust and cobwebs before reaching the other side. An uncomfortable scraping noise drew her attention to the left corner of the area. Randall panted there, exhausted. He leaned into a shelf but found himself unable to fit inside, so he stood up and struggled to budge a large ceramic pot slightly out of the way. It was around three quarters his own height and produced the same irritating noise from a second ago when dragged on the cement floor.

Scarlet used this opportunity to move closer, balancing herself along the upper shelf without being heard.

Randall leaned inside again and pulled out a small crate of garden gnomes. He then got one out from the second row on the right, checked its hollow bottom, and relaxed with a proud smile.

Scarlet celebrated too, inhaling a bit of dust. Her throat locked up. Randall put the gnome back into its box. Scarlet did everything in her power to suppress her incoming sneeze. Randall stored the box inside the shelf. Scarlet's eyes watered. Randall dusted his hands and left the room. Scarlet released her sneeze as quietly as possible. That was close. Scarlet climbed down the shelf while keeping an eye out for Randall. He was gone.

Scarlet skipped across the gardening section on high alert. Still alone. She leaned into the shelf, opening the box.

It took awhile to find the correct gnome, but she eventually found inside one of them two slips of glossy paper with QR codes printed on their backs. Scarlet folded them neatly into her pocket, just in time for Randall to walk back into earshot.

G-G-G-G

Froakie narrowly jumped over Bulbasaur's tackle, air-dodged through a vine whip, and punished it with a stylish string of pound attacks.

The audience roared at the maneuver.

Azure hid his surprise without missing a beat. He knew he hadn't pressed the button on time. The pokémon acted on its own. Throughout the course of the match, Froakie had grown more familiar with Azure's playstyle, to the point where he was beginning to buffer, and sometimes anticipate, the commands when necessary. It only lessened the input demands, though. The player still had to perform the moves, even if it felt on occasion like that wasn't the case.

Bulbasaur glared at Froakie from across the battlefield. Its trainer wielded now the same icy stare.

Azure stiffened up, prickled with awkwardness. This kid was taking a simple exhibition match way too seriously.

Bulbasaur dashed without hesitation. Froakie jumped over the tackle again. Bulbasaur baited the air-dodge this time, waiting for a second and striking him away with a vine whip.

Azure teched the landing so Froakie recovered quickly on his feet, but Bulbasaur chained two wavedashes to close the distance between them. The only option was to respect the opponent's pressure.

From that moment on, Bulbasaur never gave Froakie the chance to stand still for longer than a second. The trainer kept perfect spacing whenever he threw a vine whip, making sure that Bulbasaur could always follow up with a tackle if Froakie landed anywhere nearby. Azure had mistaken the nature of the match-up from the very beginning. He assumed that Froakie would hold the initiative more easily because of his speed. That didn't take into account the maneuverability of Bulbasaur's vine whip. Also, wasn't that attack learned at level nine?

Azure frowned. Froakie was only level five.

_Old man…_

These handicaps were becoming annoying.

G-G-G-G

Scarlet hid herself inside the big ceramic pot next to her.

Did Randall see her? His footsteps grew louder. Scarlet bit her thumbnail. Randall stopped moving. The heavy silence weighed down on Scarlet, quickening her pulse the longer it drew out. Randall took a deep breath, grabbed the ceramic pot, and heaved it to the side.

Scarlet squeezed her eyes shut. Fear rushed through her veins. Randall was about to look inside. Except he didn't. The pot landed back on its original position. Scarlet wrinkled her nose. Randall wheezed outside with hoarse breath. Scarlet covered her mouth in quiet relief. Randall was only trying to put the ceramic pot back in its place. Now that she was inside of it, he couldn't handle the additional weight.

Randall tilted the pot again, barely inched it towards his desired location, and gave up with a whimper. Scarlet forced back her laughter. She couldn't believe her tiny frame was too much for Randall. He sounded very disappointed in himself. His footsteps slowly shuffled away. Towards the garden gnome crate.

Scarlet panicked. Randall wanted to check on the codes one last time. She heard him mess with the crate until another employee interrupted him.

"Yes?" barked Randall.

"Y-you need to come! The game. It's incredible! All the customers are going nuts over it!"

"I'll be there soon."

"But…"

"What?"

"Well, a pregnant woman got into a fistfight with an autistic man. We don't really know how to handle that."

Randall gulped. Scarlet smiled. He couldn't check on the codes now.

"Fine." Randall positioned himself around the pot. "Let me put this back."

"Need help?" asked the employee.

"N-no!" Randall elevated the pitch of his tone with a hint of infantilism. "I can move it on my own!"

"If you say so…"

"Go back to work!"

The employee walked away muttering under their breath. Randall attempted to heave the ceramic pot one more time. His grunting betrayed that he could only handle a pathetic amount of strain. Unfortunately, he didn't give up. He started growling, then crying, then pleading at the inanimate object until he pushed it too far, shattering it all over the floor.

Scarlet nursed her sore head in the middle of the debris.

Randall stood paralyzed with an incredulous stare until anger swelled on his face.

G-G-G-G

Froakie rolled away.

Bulbasaur caught him with a vine whip anyways.

Azure winced. One or two more hits would end the battle. Froakie stood up, scowling. His frustration was understandable. Vine Whip was an incredible zoning tool. The bad typing only made it worse. For every combo that Azure landed, the other guy only needed one hit to deliver the same amount of damage. They'd been forced to stay on the defensive in every exchange because of it, which proved more annoying than anticipated. Then again, who cares? It was just a silly competition. Getting too invested in the outcome would only generate unnecessary suffering.

Froakie wavedashed forward. The safe road was a surefire path to stagnation. They needed to regain some momentum, even if it meant risking the match.

Bulbasaur jumped back, surprised.

This was exactly what he loathed about competitive gaming. Azure wanted to play the game. The other guy... just didn't want to lose. That wasn't any fun. Unfortunately, Froakie was still too wet behind the ears to handle this alone (and not just because he was a water type). His unfamiliarity with proper neutral meant that Azure had to take a more active role in the battle.

Froakie jumped ahead with swift fluidity. Bulbasaur stood his ground. No Vine Whip this time. The other guy knew it could be punished with a timely air dodge from that angle. Froakie landed, Azure moved him slightly forward, then a step back. Bulbasaur threw a vine whip.

Azure smirked. Froakie was just outside its range, leaving Bulbasaur completely vulnerable. After a successful combo, Froakie threw a burst of bubbles to keep Bulbasaur blocking as soon as it got up. The barrage lasted just long enough to allow for a quick grab, which led into another string of attacks.

The guy screamed an obscenity that was drowned out by the crowd's cheering.

Frokie went for another grab.

Bulbasaur anticipated this with a tackle.

Frokie crashed into the wall of the stadium. It wasn't enough to knock him out. One HP left. Azure froze. Bulbasaur had wavedashed into Vine Whip range. He cornered Froakie against the wall, waiting for the perfect time to strike. Smart. The other guy couldn't afford to miss either. If Froakie got through with an airdodge, he'd have enough time to land a combo that could end the match.

The crowd grew quiet as the tension mounted between them. Bulbasaur took a step forward, testing for a reaction. Froakie stood resolute. He wanted to win his first match at all costs. That was reason enough for Azure to take this battle seriously.

The opponent appeared completely absorbed by the present moment. His patience was extraordinary. The attack would come any second now, though.

Azure had to guess the vine whip's trajectory or lose. He couldn't let the other guy attack first. It was the only way to win.

Froakie jumped forward and air-dodged as soon as Bulbasaur moved.

G-G-G-G

Scarlet rose slowly to her feet.

Randall stood in front of the exit, blocking it. He knew she had the codes without even asking. Scarlet glanced at the looming shelves. She'd be out reach if she climbed them again, but she'd be trapping herself too. Scarlet slumped in defeat. Time to give up. No. She frowned. The only way out was forward. This just meant Scarlet had to create her own opening. She was already fired so she had nothing to lose by going on the offensive.

"Move out of the way, Randall."

Randall crossed his arms, unimpressed. "Why should I?"

Scarlet pulled out the codes. "Because I know what you want."

Randall turned up his chin. "It's too late for bargaining. I'm getting the codes anyways. I just need to keep an eye on you until the cops get here."

Scarlet hid the intense anxiety that caused her. Time for the gamble. "You don't seem to understand." She visibly prepared herself to tear up the codes. "I don't give a damn about this Pokémon crap."

Randall widened his eyes. "Y-you sneaky… you're threatening me?!"

Scarlet shrugged. "A man your age shouldn't care so much about this."

Randall scoffed. "You sound like my wife."

Scarlet frowned, ripping the codes a tiny bit.

"Wait!" pleaded Randall. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"I'm honestly tempted to just destroy these. You do realize you fired me over them, right? That's freaking nuts!"

"I know, I know, tempers flared a bit back there, but you can obviously have your job back. You're a great employee! We're like a family here, right?"

Scarlet rolled her eyes.

Randall scratched the back of his head. "Honestly, I think I was out of line when I snapped at you. You deserved better. I understand now. We can fix this with proper communication. Just hand over the codes…" he took a step forward, "...and we can discuss anything."

Scarlet shook her head. "Sorry, but I'm never working here again."

Randall went pale.

G-G-G-G

The whole stadium remained flabbergasted.

Vine whip never came out.

Froakie landed bewildered by this. Bulbasaur hunched forward, struggling. It couldn't throw its attack. The other guy grunted and wagged his controller around to no avail. Bulbasaur mimicked his frustration until a vine plopped on the ground with no energy behind it.

Azure and Froakie chuckled with wholesome, malevolent glee as understanding dawned on them. Vine whip ran out of PP. The guy couldn't spam it anymore!

Froakie slid on the ground, kicked Bulbasaur into the air, and finished the combo with an aerial Pound. Bulbasaur sprung to its feet. Froakie dashed. Bulbasaur rolled away and tackled. Froakie backed off at the last second, threw a counter attack, but missed.

The commentators were going wild in the background. They ran out of breath trying to keep up with the current pace of the fight. Everyone in the audience was on the edge of their seats. A real Pokemon battle unfolded in front of their very eyes. Unlike any other game they had ever experienced.

Bulbasaur jumped, baiting an attack.

Azure saw through the deception. He steered Froakie towards where the opponent would land. The ensuing barrage was impossible to avoid.

Bulbasaur fainted.

G-G-G-G

Charlotte walked away from the display screen with a melancholy she couldn't quite explain. That exhibition match was more than amazing. It was legendary! The game was something every fan had been secretly dreaming about since the inception of the franchise. Clearly, this marked the beginning of a new era in gaming history…

And Charlotte didn't feel excited at all. On her way out of the store, she spotted everyone gathered in the electronics department for the Nintendo Direct, which distracted her while it lasted but, no matter how much she fought it, her mind always brought her back to Scarlet's words.

_Even if you're talented…_

_Discipline..._

_Escape from reality…_

Charlotte sighed. She'd been hearing that for years. Why did it resonate so strongly now? The exhibition match had made her feel worse. It all but confirmed her worst fear. She wasn't good enough. Those pros were on a whole other level. The game had only been out for less than an hour, but they were already pulling off crazy combos, insane maneuvers, and feints within feints. Charlotte couldn't do any of that. She couldn't even visualize herself at that level.

A pregnant lady ran past cradling the game in her arms. "You'll take it from my cold, dead body!"

"Ma'am!" shouted an employee, pursuing her. "Please, ma'am, you can buy it, we won't take it from you, just pay for it and stop attacking customers!"

"I'm not leaving without my Eevee!"

Charlotte cringed. People were acting like wild animals all over the superstore. She stopped for a moment, admonishing herself. That wasn't very nice. She wasn't any better than them, considering the lengths she went to obtain a glorified cosmetic skin. What a stupid dream. Her vision got a bit blurry. Nothing would've stopped her from competing if she'd gotten her hands on those codes. Charlotte forced herself to smile, drying her eyes. This was for the best. Only an idiot would be motivated so much by a cute Eevee companion.

Someone yanked Charlotte by the arm, dragging her into an aisle.

"Eek!"

"Shh!" said Scarlet. "We need to get out of here."

Charlotte narrowed her eyes. "You."

"I'm sorry; I was a jerk."

Charlotte softened her face.

"I got one of the Eevee codes. You want it?"

"W-what?"

"Randall was hiding them so he fired me."

"What?!"

"Don't worry, I struck a deal with him, but something about his tone gave me a bad feeling when I left..."

"But why do all this?"

"Because…" Scarlet grimaced. "Look, I've been where you are right now. I saw myself in you and projected my insecurities. People will always be dismissive of anyone with a dream but the biggest failure isn't losing, it's giving up. Telling you to not even try, without knowing who you are, says more about me than it does about your goals." She smiled. "But if being honest, I really did it to stop Randall from having them. Screw him. I'm still miffed I had to give him one."

Charlotte couldn't speak. That was the nicest thing anyone had ever done for her. Scarlet didn't even look concerned about losing her job. Before Charlotte could string together some words of gratitude, Randall's voice echoed throughout the store:

"_Attention customers, if you're looking for a promotional Eevee, all you have to do is find this employee. Get the code from her before anyone else and it's yours to keep!"_

A picture of Scarlet's face popped up in every screen in the building. Charlotte gaped her mouth. The ground began to shake. Scarlet widened her eyes. A cacophony of customers grew closer by the second. They were heading this way.

"I know you're around here!"

Charlotte tensed up. She recognized that voice. The pregnant lady cackled in delight when she entered the aisle. Scarlet muttered something about killing Randall, oblivious of the imminent danger. Charlotte grabbed her wrist and pulled her out of her stupor. "Let's go!"


	3. A promise of eternal happiness

Froakie strutted along the stadium hallway with a big smile on his face.

Azure didn't have the heart to put him back in his pokeball. He looked at his PokéGlove. It reminded him of the old "Power Gloves" released for the original NES, but more elegantly designed with a red-white color palette and green buttons to match the general Pokémon aesthetic. Even though he wielded it with ease, the inner workings of the device remained a mystery to him. Azure knew it stored some of the pokémon's information within it. The holograms though… While the gear produced hardened light, it shouldn't be capable of processing the information of a construct as complex as Froakie in real time. There had to be something else behind it.

The opponent's locker room was at the end of the corridor. Azure wanted to check up on him. The audience ignored it because of their excitement, but his reaction to losing was too visceral to leave unaddressed. It reminded him of a certain someone. Froakie glanced back with saddened eyes for some reason.

Azure knocked on the door.

The kid opened it and scowled when he recognized him.

"Hi, I just wanted to drop by and say good game. Your name's Scott, right?" Azure extended his hand. "Pleasure to meet you!"

"Screw you old man!"

"I'm twenty-eight…"

Scott slammed the door shut.

Azure quickly withdrew his hand. It could've hit him. He walked away disappointed. That was just reckless. Froakie leaped ahead with an indignant pout. The poor fella took it more personally than Azure did. In a way, his adorable tantrum was understandable. A gamer's hands are his treasure. Still, there wasn't anything to gain from begrudging Scott. He probably had his reasons for acting that way. Anyone who carried that much resentment should be pitied, not scorned.

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Randall entered the control room ready to take charge of the situation. The security guard snored in his seat. Of course. Whatever. Randall needed to teach that brat a lesson. Nobody threatens his pokémon. Nobody! The fact that he had to sacrifice one for someone who didn't even respect them was an affront to every fan on the planet. He frowned. On the monitor, Charlotte ran alongside Scarlet. His hunch was correct. They _were_ working together. Randall made a mental note of that. The mob only knew about Scarlet.

Randall kicked the security guard's chair. "Wake up you fool!"

The man flailed in panic. "I wasn't-"

"Save it! Do you even know what's going on?"

The guard studied the security monitors, widening his eyes in horror. The rioting had only gotten worse.

"Why haven't you called the cops?" said Randall.

"I was…" The guard looked away embarrassed. "Oh."

"Yes. 'Oh'." Randall pointed at one of the screens. "Furthermore, your incompetence allowed these two young women to get away with some extremely coveted promotional codes. This whole mess is on you!"

The guard swallowed down his fear.

"Luckily, I, your acting supervisor, arranged a brilliant stratagem for this situation. Those two thieves are perfect bait for the mob. Monitor their location and keep every other guard updated on it. If they try to hide, force them out. Do everything in your power to steer them towards the exit."

"Isn't that dangerous? What if the mob… gets them?"

"They chose this. As long as it happens outside the store, it's not our responsibility."

"But-"

"Heck, if this works, you might even get to keep your job!" Randall grinned. "Just make sure to mention that I'm the one who saved the store when corporate comes asking questions. Understood?"

The guard nodded immediately.

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Scarlet dodged a frying pan. "Are you insane?!"

"Stop running then!" shouted the pregnant lady.

"Screw you!"

"Let's not be too hasty!" Charlotte struggled to keep pace slightly behind. "Don't get me wrong, I really appreciate the gesture, but shouldn't we consider just giving up the code?" A ladle flew by her head. "This isn't worth the danger!"

"And let Randall win?"

Charlotte furrowed her brow, speeding up when she came to a decision.

Scarlet smiled. "That's what I thought!" She leaned closer, lowering her voice. "Don't worry; they're only looking for me. As soon as we get the chance, I'll give you the code and distract them for you."

"_Attention pok_é_maniacs,_" said Randall through the speakers, "_don't give up yet on getting a promotional Eevee! If you can't find the first employee, you can still get a second code from this young lady!"_ A picture of Charlotte emerged next to Scarlet's in every possible screen. "_Happy hunting!"_

Scarlet facepalmed.

"Perfect!" shouted the pregnant lady. "Now I'll get two!"

Charlotte sprinted ahead of Scarlet with a frightened shriek.

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Duncan waited outside the office in silence. Mister Wilfery had been dealing with the logistics of the launch ever since the Nintendo Direct aired so this was the first time they saw each other since the meeting. Duncan sighed. The release was a success. Soon enough, PokéGloves around the planet would link up to the satellite network and, when the user threshold is reached, procedurally generated creatures would begin to populate the world.

Technically speaking, there was still time to stop it. The public didn't fully grasp the magnitude and complexity yet. Duncan just had to shut down the AI's main server before enough gloves were activated. Some pokémon would perish, but the main bulk of the creatures would be spared. Duncan shook his head. He already knew he wouldn't do that. Resigning from his position was the only way he could live with himself.

Mister Wilfery ushered out the last person, welcoming Duncan inside with a smile. This office hadn't been organized in years. A small segment of the desk had been cleared out for work, but the rest was cluttered with papers and old merchandise collected throughout the years. Duncan almost tripped over a box on his way to a seat. It was filled with pictures of the old man's family, including his father, the original head of the Gaia and Genesis project.

"Sorry for the mess." Mister Wilfery sat down yawning. "I didn't consider how big it was until recently. It's insane! I started tidying up last week and somehow made it even more disorganized."

"That's fine, sir. I should be the one apologizing."

"For what?"

"It wasn't my place to say what was right or wrong about the product. At the end of the day, you hired me to do a job. I just had to shut up and do it."

Mister Wilfery bellowed a deep laugh.

"Eh?"

"You got it all wrong. I was about to fire you if you didn't speak up."

"R-really?"

"Yes, I hired you for your mind, remember? You're useless if you can't say what you think."

"Huh." Duncan chuckled. "Fair enough. I guess that makes things easier. The reason I'm here is because I still don't approve of the project. You're exploiting millions of lives."

"Are we, though?"

Duncan frowned. "Yes, they're alive."

"I'm not debating that. I'm asking whether or not it's exploitation." Mister Wilfery rolled his eyes, annoyed. "Don't give me that look. Mull it over a bit."

"I can't see it any other way."

"Well, I believe exploitation would imply that they're a resource, and that type of logic doesn't apply to what we have here. These creatures will roam the world with peaceful lives of their own. We literally can't run out of them. The ones who do get caught will grow and enrich their trainer's lives, which will in turn evolve their consciousness until they become even more alive. If anything, I think we're exploiting humans to create pokémon."

Duncan furrowed his brow. "That's... ridiculous..."

Right?

Mister Wilfery leaned forward on his desk. "Human labor is what keeps them alive. The pokémon just have to exist."

"For our entertainment."

"Which they also enjoy."

"Because we programmed them to."

"That doesn't make their happiness any less valuable than ours."

"But the average person won't respect that. They'll just see them as digital commodities, like Laura or the senior executives. To be honest, I think you're placing too much hope on society. This could be a disaster in so many ways..."

"Do you really have so little faith in humanity? I never took you for the type that would confuse wisdom with cynicism."

Duncan shook his head. "I realize we're never agreeing on this. That's why I'm here to-"

An employee ran into the office. He then proceeded to report that tensions were rising in stores throughout the world because of some silly promotion. The situation had even devolved to violence and theft in some places. Duncan sank further into his seat the more they elaborated on everything. This was all his fault.

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Scarlet knocked over a long shelf when she reached the end of an aisle. It crashed into another one, tipping them over and creating a huge obstruction in front of the pregnant lady. Scarlet relaxed. Nobody could get through that. It also broke line of sight. They could pick a new route unseen. Charlotte looked back, stopping to catch her breath. The mob was following the pregnant lady's lead. She would have to get through them first if she wanted to catch up again. That probably bought them enough time to escape her wrath.

The shelf trembled for a second.

Charlotte widened her eyes. It shook again. Scarlet took a step back in utter disbelief. The screeching sound of metal scraping against itself reverberated out of the aisle. The shelf began to rise.

"Oh come on!" said Scarlet, running away again.

The people in the mob were actually lifting the shelves for the pregnant lady. It seemed they were more scared of staying trapped with her than of not getting the code for themselves. Thankfully, they were still too slow, which created a significant gap in the chase after darting through some hallways. Scarlet and Charlotte raced through the rest of the cooking appliances section without much threat. Only the distant roar of the mob followed them through the halls. It didn't make them feel any more safe, though. The ever present noise just reminded them that danger always lurked nearby.

Scarlet stopped at a fork in the road. Charlotte urged her to decide quickly. They could either make a mad dash for the exit or take a more cautious approach that would slow them down.

"We need to hide" said Charlotte. "Maybe wait until the mob scatters. If we go to the registers now, we'll just find a bunch of people buying the game."

Scarlet perked up. "I know the perfect place!"

They entered the clothing department with the mob still relatively far away. Perfect. The crowd would inevitably split up when they reached the fork, thinning out their numbers.

Scarlet traversed this area while making herself as small as possible. Charlotte followed her lead until they reached a big circular clothes rack in a corner of the department. Scarlet then crawled through some cheap sweaters and generic T-shirts, beckoning Charlotte over once inside.

"This is probably the best hiding spot around." Scarlet pulled out a sweater with a bumblebee pattern and the words 'Bee yourself' printed on it. "Nobody ever buys this stuff."

Charlotte agreed, impressed.

"Over there!" shouted a man. "They're in the clothing section!"

Charlotte pursed her lips.

"How?" said Scarlet. Charlotte looked just as confused as her. They weren't followed here. She poked her head out of the rack, careful not to make any conspicuous movements. A security guard directed people into the clothing department, including the pregnant lady. Scarlet narrowed her eyes. The exits to this department were also blocked now by other guards. All except for the one that led into the produce section.

Rack by rack, the customers searched for the pair of young women with increasing desperation. They all quietly competed against each other. Nobody wanted to draw the pregnant lady's attention once they acquired the codes. Scarlet slid back inside the rack. It was only a matter of time before they were found.

"What's going on?" whispered Charlotte.

"Security's helping out the mob."

"Oh no, the cameras…"

"It doesn't make sense. If they're monitoring us, they probably know we're in this rack. Why aren't they telling them our precise location? They even covered every exit except the one we need to take."

A customer inspected a nearby rack.

Charlotte flinched, lowering her voice even more. "Maybe they're giving us a chance to escape."

Scarlet twirled her ponytail in contemplation. It didn't make sense at all. Unless, of course, the guards just didn't want them caught yet. But why delay it? The people would just keep wrecking the store until… Wait a second. "That's it! Randall's using us to manage the crowd. He wants us out of the store!"

"Perfect, let's go then!"

Scarlet shook her head.

Charlotte wrinkled her nose, confused. "Why not?"

"I don't like playing into his hand."

"It's not like we have a choice."

"Yes we do." Scarlet grinned. "He has a code too, remember?"

"So?"

"It means we can turn the mob against him!"

Charlotte pondered for a moment. "That's not very nice…"

"You're scared, aren't you?"

"Am not!" Charlotte pouted, crossing her arms. "You're just out for revenge."

Scarlet gave her a flustered stare. "Well, I mean, but he's…"

"I already have Usagi." Charlotte smiled. "If having one makes Randall happier, then maybe he won't be so grouchy and mean all the time. That's a victory in my book. Everyone wins!"

"Usagi?"

Charlotte snickered. "I meant my Eevee. You know, like Sailor Moon!"

Scarlet sighed. Why did she feel scolded by a kid?

_A childish argument but… there's something virtuous underneath its innocence._

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Mister Wilfery didn't seem bothered by what he heard. He just accepted the report and asked how long until the scheduled legendary event was triggered. Duncan couldn't understand his nonchalant attitude. This rioting was proof that people weren't ready yet. By the time the employee left, Duncan could only say:

"You can't possibly think this is fine."

Mister Wilfery nodded. "It's unfortunate, but I'm not worried."

Duncan stood up. "Well, I wish you and the team good luck."

"Heading off early?"

"No, sir. I'm handing in my resignation as soon as I get out of here. Thank you for everything."

Mister Wilfery made a thoughtful pause. "Is there anything that could change your mind?"

Duncan shook his head. "Nothing viable from a business perspective."

"Not even the wellbeing of the pokémon?"

"What are you implying?"

Mister Wilfery leaned back in his chair. "Nothing, nothing, I just thought you cared about them."

"I don't have anything to prove."

"Quite the contrary. Surely, if you don't trust people to care for them, then wouldn't it be on you to find something that could prove beyond doubt that they're alive? That's the only way you can get what you want! In my opinion, it just looks like you're running away from the responsibility you're preaching."

Duncan scoffed. "The future of this project is _your _problem now; not mine."

Mister Wilfery shrugged with a wistful sigh. "I'm afraid you're wrong."

"You don't care I'm leaving."

"Of course I do." Mister Wilfery got out of his chair and walked around the desk. "But I'm retiring anyways so it's not like it affects me."

Duncan stiffened up. "You're…"

"This is my last week."

"Who'll be in charge?"

"Don't know." Mister Wilfery shook Duncan's hand, exuding some strangely annoying serenity. "It'll be whoever the executives think is most qualified. They'll probably go by seniority."

Duncan walked out of the office with him. "And between Andrew and Laura…"

"Laura would be chosen, yes."

Duncan sighed.

"Don't beat yourself up; It's not your problem anymore, remember?"

Duncan glared.

Mister Wilfery put a hand on his shoulder, chuckling. "I won't guilt you into taking the job. That said, there's something I want you to see before you make your choice."

Duncan hesitated for a moment but followed him down the hallway. "Fine…"

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Charlotte slithered out of the clothes rack with nimble steps. Scarlet was already ahead of her. How did she stay so calm in this situation? Charlotte couldn't even breathe without fear. The pregnant lady stood on the opposite side, barely missing them. The girls lept into another rack, and the next, gaining speed as their anxiety rose. They had almost reached the end of the department. Scarlet made it into the last rack but Charlotte slipped right in front of a middle-aged man. The customer clenched his jaw, glanced at the pregnant lady to make sure she hadn't noticed, and extended his hand at Charlotte, requesting the code.

Charlotte shook her head.

The customer begged with his eyes. He was terrified of drawing attention to himself.

Charlotte shook her head again more vigorously. The customer frowned, threatening to alert everyone else in the room. Charlotte stuck out her tongue.

"Give it!" said the customer.

Everyone looked at them.

Scarlet jumped out, shouting:

"WE SAID ONLY ONE PER CUSTOMER!"

The customer furrowed his brow. Several members of the mob prowled around him. They thought he carried a code now, but he didn't realize it yet. Scarlet pulled Charlotte up to her feet, running towards the produce section as the mob pounced on him.

The pregnant lady roared in the distance, barrelling through everything in front of her.

Scarlet remained unfazed. The exit was in sight. Security guards lined up around the registers, preventing those who were already leaving from interfering. The blockade wouldn't last long, though. A watermelon flew over Scarlet's shoulder. Another missed Charlotte, but the third one knocked Scarlet off her feet. The pregnant lady got closer, throwing another watermelon. Charlotte dodged it, but stopped abruptly when she looked ahead. The guard's blockade began to falter. Customers trickled into the exit. Scarlet stood up but another watermelon downed her.

The pregnant lady towered over her. "The code…" She forced her mouth into a motherly smile. "...please."

Scarlet tried to flee.

The pregnant lady stuffed her hands into Scarlet's pockets.

Charlotte quivered in fear. They were so close. Maybe giving it up was for the best.

Scarlet wrestled away with the code, but the pregnant lady pulled her back by her ponytail. Why did she still resist? Anger? Stubbornness? Charlotte couldn't act. She didn't deserve the code. Scarlet frantically pointed at an empty shopping cart. Charlotte studied it, finally understanding her. It was strength. Scarlet always remembered her options, just like the pros in the exhibition match. Charlotte didn't have that instinct, but maybe she could learn to cultivate it. And it all started with taking Usagi for herself.

The pregnant lady grabbed the code and pushed Scarlet away. "Finally!"

"It's not a code!" Charlotte grabbed the empty shopping cart and pushed it with all of her strength, gaining momentum until it picked up considerable speed. "Her name is Usagi and she's mine!"

The pregnant lady didn't notice until Charlotte, riding the shopping cart, snatched the code out of her hand. The pregnant lady chased after the shopping cart but couldn't keep up. Scarlet cheered on now that she was free. Charlotte lost her balance. Scarlet followed behind them. The shopping cart was out of control. It crashed through a group of customers, sending Charlotte flying out of the store and into the sidewalk.

People crowded around her while others moaned in pain on the pavement. Charlotte hid the code, hunching over her hands. It was too late. The bystanders widened their eyes, but didn't move. They were fixed on something behind her. Strange. Movement in the crowd revealed the pregnant lady walking through, who snarled aloud until something made her pause.

Charlotte squinted.

Scarlet pushed through stunned observers, relaxing when she saw Charlotte was safe. Then, she gaped her mouth a bit. What the heck was going on?

Charlotte stood up and noticed a Pidgey on the other side of the street. It pecked its wing then tilted its head at the young girl. It looked so… alive. "Aww. Cute! Is someone already playing?"

Scarlet slowly approached. "Uhh Charlotte?" She pointed upwards.

The sky was pitch black. Upon closer examination, there weren't any rain clouds in sight, like a dark veil had wrapped around the city, and a mysterious orb of dull golden light had replaced the sun.

The pidgey fluttered its wings and flew away, joining a flock of its ilk that soared past it. A gentle breeze carried them upwards, pulling along a swarm of Hoppips from the opposite direction. They lazily floated through the street in an unobtrusive way, bringing with them a bedlam of car horns. Traffic was jammed. Some people had gotten out of their vehicles to watch in awe.

Charlotte saw a Psyduck bump into a lamppost. It rubbed its head, stood up, and waddled past a group of confused businessmen in suits. Many other creatures became apparent in the area, including Taillows, Fletchlings, and a Muk inside a sewer drain.

Scarlet remained transfixed on a Hoppip. She poked it when it hovered near her, widening her eyes after it giggled with an adorable cry. Charlotte remembered Scarlet wasn't up to date on the game. This must look insane to anyone out of the loop. Even Charlotte had to pinch herself to make sure it was real.

In the Nintendo Direct, they mentioned that wild Pokémon would appear for glove wielders to catch, but she never dreamed it would be this widespread. It made sense, though. The amount of PokéGloves in a city would make them appear pretty frequently here. Charlotte giggled. The aforementioned businessmen were now playing with the Psyduck. Little by little, random passersby started interacting more with the creatures. Amazing! Buying the game wasn't necessary for engaging with the Pokémon!

One Totodile poked its head out of a manhole for a moment and scurried back inside. Charlotte immediately wanted to catch it, but realized that she still had her glove waiting at home. Scarlet continued to question her own sanity. Before Charlotte could say anything to her, rainbows swirled around the golden orb, growing bigger and bigger until no one could ignore it. Many people leaned out of the windows of their high-rise apartments to witness the spectacle. The orb pulsed brighter every second. Everything got quiet. It felt like the entire city looked on in anticipation.

The masses collectively gasped when the orb exploded, bathing the firmament with massive streams of technicolor radiance. A winged-figure emerged out of the epicenter. Every Pokémon nearby cried out in unison for the majestic beast. It flew around the city, leaving a trail of prismatic light in its wake and generating loud cheers wherever it went.

Ho-Oh!

After admiring it for a few seconds, Charlotte felt a bit silly for ever doubting her dream. Scarlet followed the Ho-Oh with her eyes, shedding a small tear that she quickly dried. This magic was undeniable. Millions of people believed in it, just like Charlotte did. The world of Pokémon had been brought to life for everyone to enjoy!

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

The employees at the launch party applauded in celebration of a job well done. Many had their pokémon alongside them, something they couldn't do casually up until now out of fear of leaking the surprise. Meanwhile, Duncan sulked in a corner, watching every viewing screen on display but not focusing on a particular one. Different legendary pokémon had appeared over major cities around the world and it was currently being live streamed on every social media platform available. An expensive marketing stunt that abused current holographic advertising laws in place. It took more than a year of hard negotiations to get every city onboard.

Duncan resented how much attention it was given during meetings these past few months. He thought it would just be a cheap gimmick to show off the new holograms, and that it would disturb anyone who didn't care about the game, but seeing millions of normal folk everywhere enjoying themselves made him reconsider something about himself. Cynicism had blinded him to a simple truth. Humanity loved pokémon.

Mister Wilfery mingled in the middle of the room with some team members. He looked back at Duncan, winked with a knowing smile, and returned to his conversation. Duncan rolled his eyes. It almost felt like Mister Wilfery planned everything from the start, including Duncan's dissension back at the senior executive meeting.

Someone tapped him on the shoulder and offered him a drink. It was Azure, Mister Wilfery's son. His froakie clung tightly to his leg. The little toad seemed overwhelmed by the amount of strangers in the room, hesitant to interact with any of the pokémon nearby.

Duncan took the drink, raising it. "Congrats on the match."

"Thanks dude." Azure raised his own, sipping from it afterwards. "You could've at least warned me, though."

"I did!"

"I'm talking about the level difference."

"Ah, that. Right. Slipped my mind."

"It's only fair, I guess. I was playing in a silly exhibition match while you were busy playing god."

Duncan frowned.

"Sorry." Azure chuckled. "I meant Arceus."

Duncan started to wonder why he was ever friends with this jerk.

"Oh come on!" said Azure. "You've worked on this for years. Dad told me it was pretty much your baby. Don't you find it weird that you're the only person in this room that isn't celebrating?"

Duncan kept staring at the different viewing screens. This should be the greatest day of his life and all he could do was worry about monumental task ahead. How did he even begin? "I just don't get why he has to retire as soon as we launch."

"Ahh he told you."

"Yeah."

"Well, what did you expect? If pokémon are real now, dad would never choose to work in an office again. Not after knowing that. Hell, even I'm getting out of retirement for this."

Duncan gawked at him. He wasn't joking. "You're competing?"

"Participating."

"Same thing."

"I think the difference is important." Azure trailed off for a second. "But yeah, the game's brilliant. Good enough to bring in a new generation of trainers from all groups and ages. There's bound to be a bunch of interesting people among them, and I want to play with 'em all! And maybe… it could even convince the more disillusioned players to return."

"It worked on you."

"It did, but some are more stubborn than others."

Mister Wilfery whistled loudly from the other side of the room. He waited until a large group of people gathered around him to begin a heart-warming speech that praised everyone's individual efforts. Eventually, it led into announcing his retirement, which was met with audible disappointment from the employees. And then, of course, he named Duncan his successor without the slightest hint of hesitation. Duncan felt his stomach drop. Everyone started clapping in approval. Azure joined them, adding:

"I didn't know you accepted!"

"Because I haven't!"

* * *

G-G-G-G

* * *

Once, when Scarlet was eight years old, she ran into her grandfather's workshop after a particularly embarrassing day at school. Calling it a workshop was a bit misleading, though. While it had the usual things one would expect like drills, saws and a workbench up front, everything behind that area was a maze of broken video game consoles and arcade units. Many promotional posters from gaming history hung on the walls of this section, with boxes full of retro peripherals and trinkets from past generations scattered along the way.

Scarlet wasn't aware of it back then, but her grandfather was actually a renowned game designer that never really retired, famous in the industry for creating a wide variety of successful games throughout his career. On this specific day, he sat in the back of the room muttering to himself like usual, playing a Final Fantasy game on a big CRT monitor when Scarlet walked up to him with teary eyes. Her grandfather comforted her the most effective way he knew: playing 'Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles' on an old Wii together!

It didn't take long for Scarlet to feel better. Her grandfather waited until she was giggling at a dead zombie to ask:

"You wanna talk about what happened?"

Scarlet looked away, deflated. "I lost in front of everyone…"

"Azure again?"

"It's not fair!" Scarlet pouted. "Why did he get all the talent?"

Her grandfather gave her an encouraging pat on the head. "It only feels that way because he's older than you. In due time, you'll catch up. You just have to find the right game and stick to it."

"I don't want a different game" moaned Scarlet. "I wanna win with my pokémon!"

"You're going about it the wrong way. Pokémon isn't about winning, kiddo."

"Then why play?"

"To connect with people!" He made a warm smile. "There's no point in winning if nobody's happy for you. At the end of the day, when you're older, the memories you'll value the most are the times you spent doing what you love alongside others. Playing should be its own reward; win or lose. And your brother is… a bit of an outlier. There's nothing wrong with losing to him."

Scarlet frowned. "It still sucks…"

Her grandfather chuckled. "Fair enough, but if he wasn't so gifted, beating him wouldn't be nearly as impressive, right?"

"I guess." Scarlet thought about it for a bit. "You really think I can be better than him?"

"Of course you can! You might stumble a few times, and it might take longer than you want it to, but I promise you, one day, you'll catch that Ho-Oh."

Scarlet eyed him with skepticism.

"What?" said her grandfather.

"I already have a Ho-Oh…"

Her grandfather laughed. "Not like the one I'm talking about! You'll get what I mean one day."

Seventeen years later, standing in the middle of that fervent crowd with pokémon running around her, Scarlet couldn't believe what she saw. A Ho-Oh in the sky. The old coot was far more literal than she ever imagined. Did he somehow arrange this from beyond the grave? Scarlet shook away the silly thought with a wistful smile. It didn't really matter. She scanned the crowd, breathing a sigh of relief. Everyone had forgotten about the code. Charlotte locked eyes with her and nodded. It was time to leave.

The walk back home felt like stepping into a completely different reality. Battles were a frequent sight on every other block. Charlotte couldn't contain her excitement whenever she noticed one but, for some reason, kept pace with Scarlet to not get left behind. By the time they reached an intersection, they had to go their separate ways. Charlotte glanced downwards and said:

"Umm, Scarlet?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

Scarlet smiled. "No problem."

"I know this isn't your thing, but if you ever want to play with Usagi or… Ahh forget it. Just thanks."

"Are you still planning on going pro?"

The question took Charlotte by surprise, but that didn't stop her from giving an immediate yes. The fierceness in her eyes couldn't be faked. Nothing would change her mind.

"Good. I might see you around, then."

Charlotte lit up. "You're gonna play?!"

"I won't promise anything..."

Charlotte deflated.

"But, I mean, I guess what I'm trying to say is that it wouldn't offend me to be your friend."

Charlotte giggled. "That's an odd way of putting it but… same? Add me when you get the chance!"

Scarlet made it to her apartment oddly calm about everything that transpired. The fact that she was now unemployed didn't give her as much stress as she anticipated. In fact, her mood hadn't been this good in a long time. Ever since she gave up on pro-gaming, her existence had turned into a gray daydream, always forcing herself through the motions of daily life with no joy, passion, or reprieve from loneliness. And she was tired. So very tired of dreading to wake up the next day just to do the same thing all over again. That wasn't stability; it was stagnation. And it didn't have to be that way. Not anymore.

The package was still where she left it. Scarlet stared at it for a while before deciding to open it. Maybe Pokémon wasn't so stupid after all.


End file.
